At seven in the evening, the land wind came off in a strong squall, with thunder, lightning, and rain; afterwards the weather cleared; and at day light [SUNDAY 2 JANUARY 1803] we followed the line of the coast to the northward.  I wished to get as near to it as possible; but the water shoaling to 21/2 fathoms when six or seven miles off, we ran out east, till it deepened to 4, and then steered north-eastward, parallel to the line of the shoal.  A low rock came in sight to seaward, which I took to be the small island laid down to the north-east of Cape Maria, but it lies nearly north from it.  At nine o’clock, when the main land was distant seven miles and the depth 6 fathoms,

The low rock, distant 4 miles, bore S. 651/2 deg.  E. Station hill near C. Maria, dist. 6 leagues, S. 71/2 E. A sloping part of the main, higher than the rest, N. 50 W. Extreme from the mast head, North.

Our latitude at noon was 14 deg. 26’ 29”, and longitude 135 deg. 541/2’; the main coast was seven miles off, and seen from the mast head as far as N. N. E. Three miles to the N. 80 deg.  E. there were two dry sands, and shoal water extended from them to the north and southward, further than could be distinguished.  We had already no more than 3 fathoms; but a sea breeze having set in at E. by S., unfavourably for going without side of the sands, we kept on close to the wind, hoping to find a passage within them.  The depth varied between 8 and 4 fathoms, till past five o’clock, when it diminished to 21/2, the main coast being distant five or six miles, and the sands out of sight astern; we then tacked, and stretched E. S. E. into 4 fathoms, and anchored at dusk on a bottom of gravel.  An observation of the moon gave the latitude here 14 deg. 19’; and the variation from an amplitude, with the head E. by S., was 0 deg. 43’ east, or corrected to the meridian upon the principle often before mentioned, 2 deg. 44’ east for the true variation.

There is no doubt that the dry banks seen at noon, were meant to be represented in the Dutch chart by the great shoal to the north-east of Cape Maria; but their direction from the cape is there too far eastward; neither do they join to the main land, nor lie out from it more than one-quarter of the distance marked:  several turtle were seen in the vicinity of the banks.  The main coast in the northern part of Limmen’s Bight is not altogether so low as at the head; but the shoal water extends equally far out, and even the southern head of the gulph is not more inaccessible to ships.

We had strong squalls of wind in the night, with rain, thunder, and lightning, and were obliged to drop a second anchor; the wind, however, remained in the north-east, and at daylight [MONDAY 3 JANUARY 1803] we stood for the edge of the shoal.  At seven, tacked ship in 3 fathoms; and a breeze coming off the land soon afterward, we steered along the shore until noon, with a good depth of water.  Several pieces of distant land, which seemed to be islands of greater elevation than usual, were then seen, from N. by E. to E. S. E.; the main coast was about five miles off, and the furthest part bore north from the mast head.  Our latitude at this time was 14 deg. 5’, and longitude 136 deg. 6’ east.